9-Year-Old Girl Walks Miles to Get Help After Car Accident

A courageous 9-year-old girl climbed out of the wreckage then walked for miles to try to find help after the car she and her father were in fell 200 feet down an embankment very early Sunday morning. She is currently recovering in a hospital outside Los Angeles. Her father did not survive the crash.

After Celia Renteria escaped the highly damaged vehicle at around 1 a.m. Sunday, she walked until she found a house. When no one answered, she walked all the way back to the car, then up a steep hill and flagged down a passing driver. That was at about 2:30.

Unfortunately, by the time paramedics found the car, Alejandro Renteria was dead. The SUV he and Celia were in veered off the Sierra Highway in the town of Acton, then tumbled down the embankment and landed in a ravine. The terrain was particularly harsh—very dark, rocky and with coyotes lurking around—which makes Celia's journey that much more impressive.

According to California Highway Patrol Sergeant Tom Lackey:

What was most remarkable was her commitment to her father and to try to get him aid under very challenging circumstances. It's very cold out here. It's also very barren. We have coyotes out here that were also howling. So it's kind of a creepy environment for a young girl to show and demonstrate such courage and commitment to her father.

She suffered minor injuries, and was very sad to hear her father had died. Authorities are investigating what caused the car to veer off the road.